Russia bans books by Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard

[skollie]

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/ne.../story-e6freuyi-1225856636066?from=public_rss


RUSSIA is set to ban dozens of texts and recordings by Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard.

"Materials on Scientology by Ron Hubbard have been found extremist and will be banned from distribution in Russia," the Russian prosecutor general's office said in a statement.

The ban relates to 28 books and audio-video discs containing lectures by Hubbard, a US science fiction author who founded Scientology in 1954.

The ruling was the latest blow to the Church of Scientology, an organisation that some countries treat as a legitimate faith but that others consider a cult designed to trick members out of large sums of money.

The ban on the Scientology materials was imposed by a court in the city of Surgut in eastern Siberia, which decided they should be added to a list of literature banned in Russia for extremist content, the statement said.

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The list of extremist literature includes numerous texts by Islamist groups and Russian ultranationalists, as well as some brochures distributed by Jehovah's Witnesses.

Local prosecutors in Surgut confiscated the Scientology materials after they were mailed there from the United States.

The materials contained calls "to commit crimes motivated by ideological and religious hatred" and "ideas justifying violence in general and in particular any methods of resistance against critics of Scientology," it said.

"This is some kind of mistake or misunderstanding," said Yury Maksimov, a spokesman for the Church of Scientology in Moscow. "The materials cited are distributed all over the world."

The Church of Scientology, which says it is seeking a world free of "war, crime and insanity" and counts Hollywood stars Tom Cruise and John Travolta among its members, won the status of a religion in the US in 1993.

But it is regarded with suspicion in many European countries, including France, Germany, Belgium and Greece, where opponents accuse it of manipulating members for financial ends.

It has repeatedly encountered problems with Russian officials. Russia has twice been fined by the European Court of Human Rights for refusing to register Scientology churches as religious organisations.

 

[FoTi]

I'm glad for the blow to the CoS, but I don't like book banning. I like information to be freely available to anyone who wishes to read whatever they want. These days, people can just go online and find most of the information on Scientology anyway. I wonder if the CoS will try to sell ebooks now in Russia?

 

[ElenaP]

I like the news, since its hindering future income for New Era Publications Denmark, and for the practicing scientolgoists, they can find the tech freely, with no cost on the internet.

So, freedom of speech is not an issue.

 

[Zinjifar]

I like the news, since its hindering future income for New Era Publications Denmark, and for the practicing scientolgoists, they can find the tech freely, with no cost on the internet.

So, freedom of speech is not an issue.

Freedom of speech is an issue, but, since this is in Russia, it's not an issue *there*. Unfortunately, the 'Church' will attempt to scream 'persecution' yet again, but, the reasons given for the ban are actually legitimate. Scientology dogma *itself* is extreme, abusive and hateful; subversive and often downright criminal, not just the actions of 'some Scientologists'.

While the books/tapes are unlikely to meet the same kind of 'ban' in any 'western democracy', the *reasons* for this Russian ban should be more widely known.

Zinj

 

[Dulloldfart]

Maybe the Russian CofS orgs and missions will start using Clearbird texts.

Joking aside, I don't really get this. It looks like a local official in Surgut, eastern Siberia, has decided to impose a ban that is valid for the *whole* of Russia. Seems like a wrong source for such a ban.

Paul

 

[alex]

Banning books is the same kind of "Dark Side" activity as fair game and disconnection.

Taking away peoples freedom of thought and expression, suppressing ideas, is wrong, no matter what the justification.

Certainly though regulating peoples actions as a result of their thoughts is a responsibility of our governments.

I always encourage my children to read any book that has been banned or suppressed just because of that status.

Any idea that is considered that dangerous needs to be known and understood, not hidden.

Ignorance is no protection.



(but then, what better recommendation can a book get in the repressive former soviet states, than a government ban?)

 

[Smilla]

I don't agree with banning books, but at least Russia has woken up to what a dangerous organization the CofS is, unlike other countries who think that ignoring the threat will solve the problem.

 

[Zinjifar]

Banning books is the same kind of "Dark Side" activity as fair game and disconnection.

Taking away peoples freedom, suppressing ideas, is wrong, no matter what the justification.

I always encourage my children to read any book that has been banned or suppressed just because of that status.

Any idea that is considered that dangerous needs to be known and understood, not hidden.

Ignorance is no protection.

Agreed Alex. Prosecute the Organization, seize its assets, put the ringleaders in jail. The books and tapes are harmless of themselves and it's unlikely that there will be any resurgence of a 'new Church of Scientology' or even more than a few die-hards still chanting 'thank you ron' in the privacy of their living rooms.

Without the organization to enforce its 'ethics' it's unlikely that many will MindFuck themselves.

Zinj

 

[alex]

Agreed Alex. Prosecute the Organization, seize its assets, put the ringleaders in jail. The books and tapes are harmless of themselves and it's unlikely that there will be any resurgence of a 'new Church of Scientology' or even more than a few die-hards still chanting 'thank you ron' in the privacy of their living rooms.

Without the organization to enforce its 'ethics' it's unlikely that many will MindFuck themselves.

Zinj

I woundn't be too sure of that....

 

[Ex_SaintHill]

I don't agree with banning books, but at least Russia has woken up to what a dangerous organization the CofS is, unlike other countries who think that ignoring the threat will solve the problem.

I agree! Banning books is in the same order as banning Tom Cruise videos in Youtube, however I am happy russia is taking steps against the cult.

 

[Zinjifar]

I woundn't be too sure of that....

I'll take my chances The cat's out of the bag. Now, if we can just document the *full* and *true* history of Scientology and Scientology operations it can become a footnote and grist for the literary and media mills.

Zinj

 

[FoTi]

I woundn't be too sure of that....

Yeh, it seems like all it would take is another yo yo who sees an opportunity to pick it up where DM leaves off. There's always more people to con....

 

[Zinjifar]

Yeh, it seems like all it would take is another yo yo who sees an opportunity to pick it up where DM leaves off. There's always more people to con....

Well, my view is that 'Scientology' only managed to 'grow' thanks to secrecy and ignorance. That's Ron's opinion too. It's too late for that now. The circumstances of the '50s and '60s are over. There will be no 'planet clearing'.

Zinj

 

[alex]

I agree! Banning books is in the same order as banning Tom Cruise videos in Youtube, however I am happy russia is taking steps against the cult.

NO.

The protections of authors of creative works was in the body of the constitution before the ammendmends. Right to the profits from ones creative work is a basic right of property ownership. (if you are of the US...)(I make my living producing material protected by copyright...)

A copyright does not protect an idea or method from being communicated, a copyright only protects the unique expression of it.

Someone owned the video of Tom Cruise and it was their right to pull it from use commercially. You can legally own, posses and view Tom Cruises video as long as you pay for it. You can talk about what he said or even reenact it!

Banning of books is of a much higher order...

 

[Mystic]

Russia's scifag-book banning is a very, very small step in The Great Universal Agenda...The total annihilation of any and all scifaggOT spew by the pseudo being hubbard.

 

[Smilla]

Well, my view is that 'Scientology' only managed to 'grow' thanks to secrecy and ignorance. That's Ron's opinion too. It's too late for that now. The circumstances of the '50s and '60s are over. There will be no 'planet clearing'.

Zinj

I agree 100%.

 

[Lermanet_com]

Russia's Ban of $cientology Books is a good thing.

Dr Robert Oppenheimer stated WHY in 1955
page 214 in The Journal of Atomic Scientists.. physicist Robert Oppenheimer..implying that the nuclear bomb is "trivial" compared to threat of the techniques of covert hypnotic mind control while a guest speaker to the American Psychological Association in 1955 -

"In the last ten years physicists have been extraordinarily noisy about the immense powers, largely through their efforts, but through other efforts as well, that have come into the possession of man, powers notably and strikingly for very large scale and dreadful destruction. We have spoken of our responsibilities and our obligations to society in terms that sound very provincial, because the psychologist can hardly do anything without realizing that for him that the acquisition of knowledge opens up the most terrifying prospects of controlling what people do and how they feel. This is true for all of you who are engaged in practice, and as the corpus of psychology gains in certitude and subtlety and skill. I can see that the physicists pleas that what he discovers be used with humanity and be used wisely will seem trivial compared to those pleas which you will have to make and for which you will be responsible."

"From 80 to 90% of the population can be hypnotized to varying degrees...At least 5% (10,000,000) of the U.S. population is extraordinarily hypnotizable, so easily hypnotizable that they are in a constant state of exaggerated suggestibility, even when awake and going about their normal daily routine. They are at the total mercy of all forms of influences and can easily be persuaded to do things and afterward have no idea why they did them..."

Dr. Tobias H. Brocher, Director, Center for Applied Behavioral Sciences, Menninger Foundation, Topeka, KS. LINK

 

[HelluvaHoax!]

To ban or not to ban?

How about....

NOT banning but, instead, requiring an appropriate WARNING-DISCLOSURE label for selling unregulated, unapproved and unlicensed psychological therapy.

And explicitly listing out the contraindications and dangers.

Then, if folks wanna experiment with their own mind, no problem.

Caveat Preclor.

 

[Cherished]

I like it, HH.

Governments need to be vigilant to continue to enforce such requirements (consider the FDA court ruling on the emeter which is now ignored).

 

[Smilla]

To ban or not to ban?

How about....

NOT banning but, instead, requiring an appropriate WARNING-DISCLOSURE label for selling unregulated, unapproved and unlicensed psychological therapy.

And explicitly listing out the contraindications and dangers.

Then, if folks wanna experiment with their own mind, no problem.

Caveat Preclor.

I would accept that as a place to start.